The Turkish home textile industry’s export revenues stood at $5 billion last year, according to Hasan Hüseyin Bayram, head of the Home Textile Association (TETSİAD).
Local and international home textile companies met at the HOMETEX fair, which is being held between May 16 and 20.
This fair is expected to boost exports by 20 to 25 percent, said Bayram.
Some 850 companies attended the fair this year. Compared to last year, the number of exhibitors increased by 15 percent and most of them foreign visitors, said İbrahim Burkay, the head of the Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Trade.
HOMETEX is one of the largest home textile fairs in the world, Burkay noted.
“Interest in the fair this year is much stronger than the previous year. A large number of companies located in the provinces of Bursa, Kahramanmaraş, Denizli, Adana,Ankara and Gaziantep attended HOMETEX. The number of international exhibitors increased significantly this year from 2022.”
Türkiye is the production base for home textiles, the local industry has a strong presence in the EU, the Americas and other countries, said Burkay. “This fair testifies the potential and power of Turkish home textile companies.”
HOMETEX was first launched 31 years ago in a tiny venue of just 600 square meters, but today it is held in an area of over 200,000 square meters, said Bayram.
Türkiye is one of the largest players in the global home textile industry and HOMETEX has played a big role in this achievement, he added.
Exports are likely to increase by 20 to 25 percent thanks to the business deals made during the trade fair, according to Bayram.
“We had meetings with companies from the Middle East, Europe and Northern Africa. We are hoping that those talks will turn into concrete business deals,” said Mustafa Ergün, one of the local exhibitors.
Turkish home textile products are of high quality, commented Evcheni Hudorojcov from Moldovia. “I am hoping to make good business deals at the fair.”
Jerome Belice from France said he was seeking cooperation with Turkish companies which manufacture expertise, particularly in technical textile products.